Shared Experiences of CRNAs Who Were On Duty in New Orleans During Hurricane Katrina

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-1-2012

Department

Nursing

Abstract

The purpose of this focused ethnography was to describe the shared experiences of Certified Regis-tered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) who were on duty in New Orleans, Louisiana, during Hurricane Katrina as well as to elucidate the psychosocial impact the storm had on them. Ten CRNAs participated in 1 of 3 focus groups that were audio recorded. The audio record-ings were transcribed and analyzed using qualitative data analysis computer software (NVivo 8, QSR Inter-national, Melbourne, Australia). Six major themes emerged from the study: caught off guard; sense of duty; uncertainty/powerlessness/frustration; group identity and cohesiveness; anger; and life-changing event. The themes represented how the CRNAs appraised and coped with the stressful events surrounding Hurricane Katrina. The psycho-social impact of Hurricane Katrina on the CRNAs resulted mainly in short-term sleep disturbances and increased drinking. Only 2 CRNAs expressed long-term psychosocial effects from the storm. The results of this study should be used to guide policies regard-ing disaster activation of CRNAs, to educate CRNAs on preparing for disaster duty, and to provide a frame-work for future disaster studies regarding CRNAs.

Publication Title

AANA Journal

Volume

80

Issue

3

First Page

205

Last Page

212

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